Politics

As we enter the final stages of the Legislative session, the House and Senate are battling over two poorly constructed and faulty tax cut packages. Furthering perpetuating this feud between the chambers, Rep. Dennis Bonnen has proposed yet another ill-conceived tax cut plan to consider.

Prison phone service companies like Secures Technologies have found a new way to profit from their captive audience through video visitation systems. This new trend is concerning to some lawmakers trying to preserve in-person visits in counties where many have been eliminated.

While many economist and critics decry the idea, the Texas House passed a resolution requesting that Congress convene a convention of states to consider amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced budget.

The future of the battle over gay marriage in Texas—and possibly in other states—is likely to be determined by the House of Representatives in the next 72 hours, according to LGBT advocates. House Bill 4105, by Rep. Cecil Bell (R-Magnolia), which is designed to undermine a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of same-sex marriage, is scheduled for a floor vote Tuesday.

Developed by Melvin Lerner during the 1960s, the “just-world theory” describes the tendency for people to believe that the world is an inherently fair place. The truth is that we don’t live in a just world, and inequality is growing worse along with shrinking social mobility.

Jeni Putalavage-Ross and Scott Ross made the difficult decision to terminate their pregnancy at nearly 21 weeks when doctors said their baby wouldn’t survive. While Texas law still allows late-term abortions like Jeni’s, a handful of ultra-conservative lawmakers are targeting that exception this session.

After about an hour of debate, the Senate passed legislation Thursday that would modestly increase funding for pre-K programs. House Bill 4, a priority of Gov. Greg Abbott, passed on a 25-6 vote, with a handful of GOP senators voting no.